Paying Respects 75 Years Later: The Mann Gulch Fire
In which I revisit favorite articles from 2024.
Originally published in the Hughson Chronicle & Denair Dispatch on July 29, 2024. The Hughson Chronicle & Denair Dispatch is part of MidValley Publications - committed to the power of the positive press. Reprinted with Permission.
The public is invited to honor the memory of David Navon, from Modesto, during a Memorial Service at Lakewood Memorial Park, 900 Santa Fe Ave. Hughson, on August 5, 2024, at noon. David Navon died on August 5, 1949, near Helena, Montana. It was not a matter of when or where he died, but the heroic manner in which he died inspired the memorial 75 years later.
Navon was one of the 13 Forest Service Smokejumpers who died in the Mann Gulch fire in Helena National Forest in 1949.
This summer, the USDA Forest Service, Montana Discovery Foundation, National Smokejumpers Association, and other partners will recognize and honor the men who perished in the Mann Gulch Fire of 1949. The memorial is coordinated with services across the country to honor the men who lost their lives that day.
The Smokejumper program began in 1939. This was its first tragic loss of life. Lessons from it continue to be applied to today's firefighting techniques to increase safety and provide fire behavior awareness.
The fire started when dry lightning struck south of Mann Gulch, a tributary of the Missouri River. Forest ranger James O. Harrison spotted the fire around noon on August 5, 1949. Harrison, a college student at Montana State University, fought the fire on his own for four hours before he met the crew of smokejumpers who had been dispatched from Hale Field, Missoula, Montana.
On the afternoon of August 5, 1949, a team of 15 smokejumpers parachuted into area.
As the team approached the fire to begin fighting it, unexpected high winds caused the fire to suddenly expand, cutting off the men's route and forcing them to flee uphill. During the next few minutes, a "blow-up" of the fire covered 3,000 acres in ten minutes, 660 mph, claiming the lives of 13 firefighters. Only three of the smokejumpers survived. The fire would continue for five more days before being controlled.
In “Reflecting on a 70-year-old tragedy that took the lives of 13 firefighters,” Bruce Hesler wrote, “Exhaustive studies of the Mann Gulch Fire show that the deaths may have had more to do with a breakdown in group dynamics than extreme fire conditions or simple misfortune. This idea comes from later research into the fire – research that is more complete than the initial official inquiry.”
University of Chicago English professor and author Norman Maclean researched the fire and its behavior for his book “Young Men and Fire” (1992).
“Supported by these facts and his research, Maclean revealed the fire for what it was – an out-of-the-ordinary situation where the authority of leadership was challenged and ignored with deadly results,” Hesler wrote. According to McClean, the 75% incline of the terrain, dry knee-high cheatgrass fueling the fire, broken down communication of the team’s single radio, and very dry, extremely hot weather all contributed to the disaster.
Hesler describes the event: "In a brief sequence, only minutes, conditions deteriorated so rapidly that making an assessment, let alone form a plan, would have been near impossible. Confused by an order to drop their tools and then seeing their leader light a fire, directing them to get inside the burned area, was all it took for panic to set in. Disoriented and confused, they fled the lurching fire front, what Maclean called ‘a race they couldn’t win’ against 30-foot flames advancing at an estimated 660 feet per minute. The leader survived by lying down in the small area he had purposely burned. Two others broke from the group, racing for a rock crevice atop the ridge where they found refuge and survived. Another member found a similar opening but was badly burned and later died.”
Maclean called the four front-running firefighters, who died heartbreakingly close to reaching the top of the ridge and safety, the Four Horsemen. Navon was one of them.
Navon was 28 when he was killed. He “served in World War II and survived some of its famous battles. He earned a forestry degree at the University of California at Berkeley. He loved books and art, said his sister, who was five years younger. The last time she saw him, they went together to the DeYoung Museum of Art in San Francisco in June, before he went to Montana for his second season of firefighting,” reporter Ginny Merriam wrote 23 years ago.
Because of their youth, there are few descendants of those who died. Thus, the memorial honoring them 75 years after their sacrifices invites everyone from their communities to pay respects by marking their graves, supporting the families, and communicating to them, “We remember.”
The 13 Smokejumpers who died in the Mann Gulch Fire are
Robert J. Bennett, 22, from Paris, Tennessee
Eldon E. Diettert, 19, from Moscow, Idaho, died on his 19th birthday
James O. Harrison, Helena National Forest Fire Guard, 20, from Missoula, Montana
William J. Hellman, 24, from Kalispell, Montana
Philip R. McVey, 22, from Babb, Montana
David R. Navon, 28, from Modesto, California
Leonard L. Piper, 23, from Blairsville, Pennsylvania
Stanley J. Reba, from Brooklyn, New York
Marvin L. Sherman, 21, from Missoula, Montana
Joseph B. Sylvia, 24, from Plymouth, Massachusetts
Henry J. Thol, Jr., 19, from Kalispell, Montana
Newton R. Thompson, 23, from Alhambra, California
Silas R. Thompson, 21, from Charlotte, North Carolina
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